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Saturday, February 24, 2018

Life Without Plastic -- 9 More Ways from Q-Z

"Life Without Plastic"

Editor's Note: The Irish Times recently published the A-Z guide to cutting down on plastics in the home. Here are 8 samples of ways to reduce plastics so that we can slow down plastics in our water and the food we eat.

R is for the recycling “myth”. Only 6 per cent of new plastic material comes from recycling, and failure to recycle more costs the European economy €105 billion a year, according to EU figures. Only three of six main plastic types are recycled: PET, HDPE and PVC. R is also for Repak, which explains that Ireland’s plastic waste rate is so high because we measure plastic waste separately, unlike some other EU member states.

S is for a single shower, which can wash 100,000 microbeads into rivers and seas, and for shampoo soap, string bags, stainless steel storage and the spork.

T is for teabags, which may have some plastic. Check labels and try loose-leaf.

U is for utensils . Bring your own spork or chopsticks to work.

V is for vinegar, a great cheap cleaning product, and for vegetable suppliers who deliver in boxes or sell loose.

W for waste, which you are already reducing, and for the deep-diving Cuvier’s beaked whales that ingested plastic bags and died painful deaths on the Scottish isle of Skye and Norway over the past two years.

X is for the extra effort it takes a lot to tackle this.

Y is for yogurt, which tastes far better from jars.

Z is for zero waste, which may feel like a far-off continent at times, but think of all the zooplankton you will save if you make it even half that far.